Abstract
This paper explains that the Abbasid and Ottoman empires made use of the glorification of Islam. The author points out that these empires attempted a standardization of language, brokered different relationships with non-Muslims, saw extensive economic growth and continued expansion of the arts, letters and cultural attainment. The paper relates that both the Abbasid and Ottoman empires had the emotive symbols of their respective capitals as political, commercial and spiritual centers. The author underscores that both empires made errors in over-expansion, failure to consistently respect minorities and the use of force. The paper concludes that the result was forever fragmentation when faced by external pressures and the risk of oppressing constituent groups, which tends to affect all empires in the end.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Political Control and the Abbasid Empire
Economic and Social Affairs
Symptoms of Decline
Conclusion

From the Paper
"The decline of the Abbasids owed in good measure to the way in which the Shii community had been treated since the beginning. Anti-Caliphal sentiment understandably continued as much the Sunni ulama worked to crate the impression of Muslim unity by way of strong self definition and standardization of law, language, religious practice and political rationales. By the 13th century, the Abbasid Empire was a fragmented collection of states and territories ruled by military commanders. Of course, the Ottoman Empire would also over-expand, its different oppressive campaigns and government by military force creating quiet enemies."

Tags:caliph, shii, sunni, egalitarianism, ostentation, ostentation

Abstract
This paper examines how the Ottomans adapted from the Abbasid empire how to manage various aspects of a government, including politics, the military, economics and religious tolerance. It also describes how their capitals were not just political or economic centers but spiritual symbols.The paper concludes by showing how and why the empires declined.

From the Paper
"The political, economic and social features of the Abbasid Caliphate (758-1258) were often duplicated by the succeeding Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans had learned from the experience of the Mongol invasion, as fought off by the Mamluk's Turkish slaves, en route to Ottoman Turkish rule in the early 16^th century. From there, if one understands something of the Abbasids, one notices the adoption and adaptation of methods that presumed centralized Islamic, military authority, economic and cultural development, and usually good management of non-Muslim communities but..."

Tags:abbasids, ottomans, imperialism

Abstract
In this paper the author attempts to address exactly how the Greeks reacted to the fall of Constantinople to the Turkish Empire. He highlights how preliminary research appears to show that some Greeks renounced their culture and their church and were fully assimilated into the Ottoman Empire, but that a greater number of Greeks (The Phanariots) retained their language, their culture and their religion and were able to not only prosper but rise to positions of significant power in the empire. These individuals colluded with the Ottomans without becoming part of them. A third group of Greeks who remained in the Greek Islands evaded daily contact with their rulers and lived the ordinary lives of Greek peasants and sailors in the previous millennium.The paper concludes with the evidence that the Greeks ended up destroying the Ottomans.
Considering Assimilation
The Ottomans and the Bulgarians
What is Greece and Who are Greeks?
Introduction of the Ottoman System
Bulgarian Society under the Turks
Ottoman Domination of Eastern Europe and the Middle East
Slavery in the Arab World and the Janissaries
Dhimmis (Protected Persons)
Millets and the Phanariots
The Greek Establishment after Constantinople's Fall
Revolutionary Influences versus Ottoman Sympathizers
Greece's Revolutionary Phase
After the Revolution
Conclusion

From the Paper
"It is interesting to observe that the founding father's of the United States looked to Greece and its early democracy as an ideal on which they would build post revolutionary America and that the American revolution was first fought by dissatisfied over taxed small farmers (North Carolina) and then joined eventually by members of the elite who had experience in military science and political organization. It is interesting to note that the wealthy and middle class colonists in America were very reluctant to revolt against the British especially in the early years of the revolution".

Tags:mongal, turk, koran, slaves, middle, east, wars, balkan, loyal

Abstract
This paper looks at the circumstances that lead to the dissolution of the once great Ottoman Empire. The paper asserts that the fall of the Ottoman Empire is unique in history since it was not caused by a purely military defeat, rather, after a period of slow decline it disintegrated under complex political, military, economic and social circumstances that acted both within the borders of the Empire and outside of it. This paper argues that despite growing interest in the fall of the Ottoman Empire among foreign forces (France, Britain and Russia among the most prominent), it was ultimately the inability within the Empire to adjust to the new world order that lead to its demise. Particular attention is paid to the events during the 19th century when the roots of the fall can be traced.

From the Paper
"This essay will look at the circumstances that lead to the dissolution of the once great Ottoman Empire. The fall of the Ottoman Empire is unique in history since it was not caused by a purely military defeat. Rather, after a period of slow decline it disintegrated under complex political, military, economic and social circumstances that acted both within the borders of the Empire and outside of it. This essay will argue that despite growing interest in the fall of the Ottoman Empire among foreign forces (France, Britain and Russia among the most prominent), it was..."

Tags:ottoman empire, fall, history

Abstract
This paper examines the discussion of the complex relationships the Ottoman Turkish Empire had with her European and Middle Eastern neighbors, as presented in Suraiya Faroqhi's book "The Ottoman Empire and the World Around It". In particular, the paper examines the writing style and expertise of author Suraiya Faroqhi. The paper discusses how the book examines the time period when the Turks were the foremost power in the Muslim world, taking the title from the Arabs before them.

From the Paper
"One of the most controversial and most generalized peoples that ever entered the European continent are the Turks. Beginning with the Seljuks, this ethnicity originally from near Mongolia has stayed in the European mindset, even to this day. The actions of Turkish ancestors still might be affecting modern Turkey's inadmission to the European Union."

Tags:Turkey, Ottoman, Empire, Suraiya, Faroqhi, Istanbul, Ottomans, Turks, Hapsburgs

Abstract
The examines the geography, political make-up and cultural aspects of life in the Balkans under the Ottoman Empire.

From the Paper
"The Balkans have had a long and colourful history. This is because they are in a unique geographic location. They are basically a cross roads between many other regions. In "Ideas about, and reactions to modernization in the Balkans" Roumen Daskalov states, It was the contact with (Western) Europe, experienced as more advanced and superior, that posed the problem of development ("progress," modernization) to the Balkan peoples under the..."

Tags:balkans, ottoman, empire

Abstract
This paper documents the Ottoman Empire based on the book; "A History of the Arab Peoples" by Albert Hourani. The paper explains the rise of Islam to the present day.

From the Paper
"Albert Hourani provides a history of the Arab-speaking parts of the Islamic world, from the rise of Islam to the present day. Hourani writes extensively about the Ottoman Empire, a state founded in the late 18th century by Turkish tribes in Anatolia and ruled by the descendants of Osman I. The principality founded by Osman was at the main point of contact with the Byzantine Empire."

Tags:istory, Ottoman empire, islam, muslim, arab, faith, territorial expansion, sultan, europe

Abstract
This paper examines the nature of the threat that the Ottoman Empire posed to 16th century European states. The author finds that the reality of the menace is accepted during the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent, but the magnitude of the danger is, however, questioned.

From the Paper
"At first glance it is tempting to view the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century as posing a very serious threat indeed to Europe. From the reign of Mehmet II, the achievements of the Sultans mounted, so that in order to understand the menace of the Ottomans one must place due emphasis on the capture of Constantinople by the aforementioned Sultan in 1453. From this point the momentum driving the Ottoman state to becoming a major power seemed to generally increase, through the reigns of Bayezit II, Selim I and culminating in the reign of the "lawgiver" Suleyman, known by the West as the ?Magnificent.? Indeed, it is clear that the threat posed was a real one, and at times serious enough to provoke a sense off panic from European peoples, especially following moments such as when the army of Suleyman laid siege to Vienna for some 3 weeks before withdrawing before the winter of 1529. There were also some impressive victories for the Ottomans: Rhodes, described by Ann Williams as "the thorn in the Sultan's flesh" was taken from the Knights of St. John in 1522, and Belgrade the "gateway to central Europe" captured in the same year as the defeat and slaughter of the army of Louis II of Hungary. Barbarossa, as Lord Admiral of Suleyman's formidable fleet ravaged the coastline of Italy and North Africa and pitched himself against Dorea, and posed a serious distraction for Charles V. However, the reality of the threat the Ottomans posed has been inordinately presented, a process which began in the interpretations made by contemporary 16th century commentators whose knowledge of the east was often incomplete. An examination of Knolles "General History of the Turks" praises aspects of the Ottoman Empire such as its military and political organisation and unified faith whilst revealing the author's lack of acquaintance with it in his portrayal of the Turks as a society primarily militaristic, uncultured, corrupt and unstable. Thus whilst communicating the strength of the Islamic adversary in order to encourage Christian unity in the face of danger, he is loath to credit the Ottomans to highly as a race of foreign ?others.? His prejudices and motivations therefore dictates that his source by treated with caution, and indicates to the historian the dangers of accepting 16th century interpretations of the threat posed by the Ottomans too highly."

Tags:magnificent, ottomans, suleyman, warfare

Abstract
This paper provides a thorough overview of the history of the Ottoman Empire and the impact it had on the world. The paper describes the early structure of the empire's political and military might, the Ottoman empire's gradual demise and its final collapse.

The Early Structure of Political and Military Power
in the Ottoman Empire
Turkish Military: The First Place the Turks Occupied in Europe was
Gallipoli
The Growth and Expansion of Russia from the 18th Century Onwards
Egypt (because of cotton) Begins a Move Away
from the Ottoman Empire
Demands Pressed Upon the Ottoman State - and Russian Expansion -
Led to a Further Weakening of Ottoman
The Janissary Corps
The Ottoman Failure to Reform the Inefficient System of
Government they were Using
The Origin and Decline of the Ottoman Empire

From the Paper
"And it is important to note that Turkey's domination over Africa's northern areas was not entirely well defined, and the Ottoman Empire did not really have permanent, clear-cut borders; rather, the empire was more of a military administration over a vast region of diverse cultures and geography."

Tags:europe, asia, minor, seljuk, turks, middle, east, africa, ahmad, sultan, constantinople

Abstract
This paper addresses the gradual decline of the Ottoman Empire as a result of many mitigating factors, centralized and weak power in the ineffectual sultanate, nepotism, capitulations, military weaknesses, economic crisis and opposing European development and strength. The paper points out that the empire, which had been marked by extreme pluralism and demonstrative social order, in the face of massive variances of culture and economies in a huge empire faced internal and external strife that eventually toppled it. The development of the Ottoman Empire, which had begun under the auspices of economic power, was demonstrated in technological development and place-based economics, as well as social and religious tolerance. The paper concludes that, ultimately, the Ottoman empire fell because these progressive ideals were disseminated into a culture that demanded adherence to traditions that were archaic and contrary to continued economic and social development.

From the Paper
"European trade agreements were not an unusual economic situation in the Ottoman empire. Many in fact date back to the beginning of centralized development. As a mater of rational congress, individual and state sponsored cooperation was offered to European entities to facilitate profit and the export of goods that were thought essential to Europe and therefore Europeans and their traders were willing to pay well for. One clear example of this is the age old spice trade that could not reach Europe without some transgression across Ottoman lands. (Goffman 181) (Sicker 10) (Barsoumian 174) To some degree the centralization of power also demanded the continued centralization of economic dominance, by the state, so these age old compromises and pacts that were the development of regional propriety began to be seen by the central government as in need of its own official stamp. So, as an extension of the egalitarian manner in which individual principalities and faiths were allowed relative independence the state created trade capitulations to further develop European trade control."

Tags:Turkey, social, economic, history, conservatism, progress